Chained Hearts: From Slavery to Sovereignty-Chapter 176: Cassian’s Wait in the Demon Realm (02)

For if Cassian succeeded, if he truly became the Consort of the Supreme Lord, then all of them would be forced to bow to him. A human. A creature they considered undeserving. The thought alone was intolerable to them. And so, they began to plot. To scheme. To tear him down before he rose too high.

Even the concubines themselves knew that Cassian’s chances were slim. The Supreme Lord had never shown any interest in choosing a consort again. He was said to despise the very title. The wound of betrayal from centuries ago had never healed, and the shadow of it hung over the entire demon realm.

Everyone knew the story: long ago, the Supreme Lord’s own consort had betrayed him. No one knew exactly how or why, but the act was so devastating that the Supreme Lord had withdrawn into slumber, taking the other Demon Kings with him. Together, they sealed the demon realm behind an unbreakable barrier, cutting it off from all other worlds.

But beyond these bare facts, nothing else was known. The rest was silence.

Cassian had always found this strange, almost disturbing. It was as if the past had been wiped clean, erased with careful hands. No one would speak about the Consort. Not what race the Consort had been, not whether it was a demon or a human, not even if it was male or female.

The topic itself was taboo. When Cassian tried to ask questions, all he ever received were cold looks, evasive answers, or complete silence. It was as if the very memory of that figure had been locked away, forbidden to speak of.

And yet, the curiosity gnawed at him. Who could have held such a place beside the Supreme Lord, only to betray him in the end? Who had been close enough to leave a scar that still shaped the present?

Sometimes, Cassian’s mind went where he didn’t want it to. A bold, reckless thought would surface, one he quickly tried to push away.

What if it had been him? Not this him, but his past self—the one who had once loved so deeply, so fiercely.

No. He refused to believe it. It wasn’t possible. In his memories, their love had been unshakable. He could not imagine betraying the man he had once held above all else. It went against everything he knew, everything he remembered of that bond.

And yet, the doubt lingered in his mind. A whisper in the back of his mind that refused to fade, no matter how many times he silenced it, it always came back.

The thought alone was enough to chill him. What if it was true? He had always felt a stinging ache in his chest, as though he had done something unforgivable in the past. Was that the hint?

~~~

Another week slipped by, heavy as a mountain upon Cassian’s shoulders. Each day stretched long and empty...until at last, the news finally came.

The second Demon Queen had awakened from her slumber.

The announcement swept through the demon realm like wildfire. Trumpets rang in the distance, the skies lit with streams of burning magic, and the great cities erupted in festivals. Cassian could hear the echoes of their joy even from Palace. As another of the Supreme Lord’s chosen pillars had risen again.

For the first time in months, Cassian’s heart clenched not with despair but with a fragile, trembling hope. He understood, finally, where Dorian had gone.

He had not abandoned him. He had not vanished into silence without reason.

The Supreme Lord had gone to guide the awakening, just as he had been present at the Galdareth when the Third Demon King broke free of his chains of sleep. Dorian had never been absent without purpose. He was there for his subordinates...always.

And in that realization, Cassian’s discontent melted away like frost under the morning sun.

Dorian truly cared for them.

Even now, Cassian’s chest tightened at the thought. That fierce, steady loyalty—how could he have doubted it? How could he have dared to imagine himself forgotten? No... Dorian’s heart was vast, heavy with burdens Cassian could only glimpse, and yet he had never forsaken his people.

A laugh escaped him, soft, breathless. Relief struck him with dizzying force. He almost felt foolish for the bitterness that had plagued him these past weeks. Soon. Soon, Dorian would return. His work was complete now. And if the Demon Queen had awakened, then surely, he would come back.

Cassian could not sit still.

He rushed back to his chambers, the corridors blurring around him. For the first time in months, the palace no longer felt like a prison of silence. His pulse thundered in his ears.

He would see him again.

The thought alone sent color surging to Cassian’s face. He tried to tell himself to remain calm, to maintain his composure, but his hands betrayed him.

He wanted to appear at his best. Not as some hollow, withering concubine wasting away in the absence of his lover, but as someone worthy of Dorian’s gaze. Someone who had grown stronger, sharper, more radiant even in his absence.

Cassian caught sight of his reflection in the polished obsidian mirror. His own face stared back—sharp lines softened by the faint flush creeping into his cheeks. It was ridiculous, he thought, ridiculous that after all he had endured, all the games he had survived, he could still blush like some young boy awaiting the arrival of his beloved.

And yet... he did not shy away from it.

Months had passed since their last meeting. Months since he had last heard Dorian’s voice or felt the weight of his presence near. The longing inside him had grown unbearable, and now that longing finally had an answer.

He was coming back.

Cassian straightened, adjusting the folds of deep crimson silk around his shoulders. His fingers lingered over the clasp at his throat, tracing it once, twice, before fastening it firmly.

When Dorian returned, he would be ready.